[brookstroutr]

With my pending relo to NZ, I am inqiuring about changing my US cars to RH drive and was wondering if anyone here has done this operation? I'm thinking of this mod prior to moving as I now have a nice, purpose built shop and would probably be better at this stage to do this prior to shipping the cars. I've lived in the Carribean before with LH on the opposite roadway but would prefer the proper handing.

My initial perusal is suggesting the steering linkage and dash are the biggest concerns.

 

[Aggie57]

Having seen your other threads on this I can appreciate your attachment to your current cars however be aware there are many original RHD GTV6's in this part of the world and they are very reasonably priced. Same with 635's although no as many and mostly non-M.

In terms of the GTV6 I guess that means you'll have no trouble buying the parts you need (steering, pedal box and pedals, seats, lights, dash etc) it also means you'll end up with a bitsa with very poor resale value afterwards.

Having said that, there are plenty of people with the experience you're after mainly around US cars (Mustangs, Corvette etc) and classic's (Alfa Spiders, MGB, TR6 etc).

 

[brookstroutr]

Alister,

I obviously grew up on American Muscle Cars. My first car was a '66 Chevelle SS396 which I rebuilt at 17 years old in the backyard. Then pther Chevelles, GTO's, Mustangs, Camaros with my installed Rat Motors; preferred the 427 cid, Road Runners and the like. I was simply weighing options for this transition.

Quite frankly speaking, these cars have been elevated to such a high standard that I'd be nuts, financially, to sale them due to their under-valuedness status. These could last me until the MVD takes my driver's licence or I'll just pull a 'Thelma and Louis' act sans rearview mirrow.

 

[brookstroutr]

Did I forget to mention my pristene Euroized '88 E28 M5 BMW? I just sold my '91 E34 M5 BMW.

 

[brookstroutr]

A couple of more shots of the '88 E28 M5. I had to downsize to get on this forum.

 

[Jerry Ehlers]

E28

Wow! I,m curious about two things having never seen that engine with the cam cover off. What are the adjusting screws for located at the inside of each cam cap? and where are the head bolts? That is a very beautiful BMW.

 

[brookstroutr]

This is one primo 'M' from the PO and under my tutelage. The golden color illustrates this with 124k miles on the clock. These were handbuilt mechanics to homologate the motors for racing back in the day. The US version E28 M5 was produced and imported only one year - 1988. BMW originally announced that only 600 would be produced and exported to the US market, however, BMW doubled the quantity to 1200 which prompted a class action lawsuit. Typical f*kkin Amerikans. The class action suit stated that the value of this particular vehicle was diminished by the overage of manufacture... A bunch of doctors and attorneys here were the primary purchasers of these vehicles.

The lawsuit was settled in that BMW would give the original purchaser only the full purchase price if and only if they were to trade the M5 in towards a purchase of another new BMW.

The overhead twin cam 4 valve per cylinder is a breeze to adjust the valves with the proper valve shim tool tappet. It just clips to the camshaft and then depresses the valve bucket allowing one to remove the shim on top of the valve. You check the valve shim thickness and swap accordingly. The shims for the BMW S38 B35 and B36 motors actually can be interchanged with the Volvo shims of the same era. The earlier M88/3 shims are smaller in diameter, take a different tool (I have both) and the Volkswagen shims again of the same era interchange. I've got about 100 shims between both motores.

I'm actually in the process of interchanging the BMW M88/3 buckets onto the GTV6/Milano intake valves so you don't have to practically dismantle the top end to adjust the intake V6 valves. The size and diameter are identical. The only pre-work involved is a little shaving around the Alfa V6 cams to accept the valve spring compressor. Kinda cool, eh?

The Cams sit in their own 'cambox' above the cylinder head which is a Royal PITA when rebuilding. BMW recommends to run the fresh motor for 30 minutes and then remove all the cambox and affiliated parts to re-torque the cyl head. F that!! I just re-torque a couple of times over a few days before installing the cambox stuff allowing the bolts to stretch to their take.

Here's a couple of scans from the BMW OEM Tech Manual.

 

[Aggie57]

I'm not saying sell them, I'm saying don't convert them unless you absolutely have to. LH to RH conversions for the sorts of cars you have are much less desirable than original RHD cars and for much the same money you could buy something locally, drive it and then sell it when (if) you leave without upsetting your lovely clean original cars.

That E28 looks really nice. One of my best friends had a mint E34 for a number of years which was really nice to drive. Amazing flexibility for what it is, lots of top end power and a real mile gobbler. Also incredibly reliable.

 

[brookstroutr]

I'll probably take your advice as I've seen posts from other Aussies in the past that did this. They said it was a *****.

Thanks for saving me the time and cost. The main point you stated was the diminished re-sale value. Who needs that today? I just sold my '91 E34 M5 and their value is waaay down today due to the E39 M5 drastic drop in value as they come up for maintenance expenses.

 

[AlfaTipo]

Brooks, good post on the lawsuit and valve adjustment.

Good luck on the move. If you expect to return to the US I would consider keeping the cars in storage and getting others to enjoy. I suspect the cost of conversion (time and expense) and compromised value would outweigh any benefit of driving them.

 

[Stravs]

In my experience, kiwis dont really care if the car was originally lhd or rhd.
Yours is such a stunning example that it is sure to get top dollar if you ever go to sell it.